More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
ameliorate
Forty! He was not young any longer. Life no longer stretched before him as a vast uncharted field, its horizon lost in the distance. He had been on Trantor for eight years and the time had passed quickly. Another eight years and he would be nearly fifty. Old age would be looming.
Im getting old
found himself raging at the passage of time.
Amen
sinuous
on their faces. The Emperor did not walk to others. He summoned them and they came to him. If he did walk, he never showed signs of haste or emotional trauma. How could he? He was the Emperor and, as such, far more a symbol of all the worlds than a human being.
denigrate
know a little more precisely what will happen in the Periphery,
“It’s all but impossible to change people’s minds and hearts, Raych. It’s enough to try and perhaps eliminate the worst of the injustices.”
“In twenty thousand years, democracy has never been used for very long without falling apart.”
consort,
daughter by the shoulders and looked her straight in the eyes. “We must all die someday, Wanda. I’ve explained that to you before. Just the same, we don’t worry about it till the someday is much closer.” She wiped Wanda’s eyes gently. “Grandfather is going to stay alive till you’re all grown up and have babies of your own. You’ll see. Now come back with me. I want you to talk to Grandfather.”
him, he told himself. It was the matter of leaving the Psychohistory Project unfinished.
could not keep the indignation out of her voice. She turned on
though, you lack the ability to handle ordinary people—shall we say, stupid people. You lack a certain deviousness, a certain
“To be master is what is important. Better to be a master in a cubicle than a figurehead in a palace.” “Best yet, to be master in a palace. Why not?”
and chaotic anarchy. “However, though the request is reasonable and the citizenry is better off paying taxes as their price for maintaining a stable and efficient government, they are nevertheless reluctant to do so. In order to overcome this reluctance, governments must make it appear that they are not taking too many credits, and that they are considering each citizen’s rights and benefits. In other words, they must lower the percentage taken out of low incomes; they must allow deductions of various kinds to be made before the tax is assessed, and so
In every such case, however, a reduction in friction here meant an increase in friction there. Never at any time was there a total decrease or, for that matter, a total increase in the friction within a closed group—that is, one in which no old members leave and no new members come in. What I proved, with the help of Elar’s achaotic equations, was that this was true despite any conceivable action anyone could take. Hari calls it ‘the law of conservation of personal problems.’
Love this . Cpnservartion of complexity
that everything that is bad is conserved, and that to save the Empire from destruction is merely to increase destruction of another kind?” “Actually some have suggested that, but I don’t believe it.”
“What’s bugging Mom is Wanda’s dream. You know how Mom feels about protecting you. I’ll bet even a dream about your dying would be enough to make her think of a murder conspiracy against you.” “I certainly hope there isn’t one.”
while they’re there. They can’t stay there forever and, as soon as they leave, the situation will revert to what it was.” Seldon knew what they were talking about. The news had come over TrantorVision only three days ago that the Imperial government had decided on a show of force to bring the obstreperous Governor of Anacreon into line. Seldon’s own psychohistorical analysis had shown him that it was a useless procedure, but the
Seldon said sadly, “You’re almost twenty years younger than I am.” (Almost everyone is far younger than I am, he thought, even more sadly.)
There was so much more in the past, so much less in the future, that the mind turned away from the looming shadow ahead to contemplate the safety of what had gone before.
And as he stood there, he had no idea whatsoever that the psychohistorical revolution had begun.
He ground his teeth. Would his newest brainchild, the Second Foundation, ever be established or was it an illusion that would remain always just out of reach? 7 Hari Seldon walked into Dr.
I want to create a great Encyclopedia, containing within it all the knowledge humanity will need to rebuild itself in case the worst happens—an Encyclopedia Galactica, if you will.
“See here,” said Seldon with sudden energy. “All this business of possibly closing down the Library, of making it less accessible, of refusing all information—all this business of declining appropriations—all this is itself a sign of Imperial disintegration. Don’t you agree?”
Partly this was because he didn’t yet see that use clearly himself.
Did Asimov need to write this part of thr series to cope with his own humanity?
Amaryl’s breathing was growing stertorous, but then he stirred and his eyes opened, staring directly at Hari. He said, “What will happen to psychohistory when I’m gone? Have you thought of that?”
It must be so hard to get old and see loved ones move to the next life.
“Wonderful!” said Amaryl weakly. “Wonderful! You see how I’ve chosen the right time to die? There’s nothing left for me to do.” “Don’t say that, Yugo.” “Don’t make such a fuss over it, Hari. I’m too tired to do anything. Thank you—thank you—for telling me”—his voice was weakening—“about the revolution. It makes me—happy—happy—hap—”
dont wait til your end for revolution
Demerzel, Cleon, Dors, now Yugo…leaving
But after all that time, you’ve failed, Dad. There’s no crime in failing. You’ve tried so hard and you’ve gone so far, but you’ve run into a deteriorating economy, a falling Empire. It’s the very thing you’ve been predicting for so long that’s stopping you at last. So—”
Wow. Denying your failuresat death. Dont waste time, Asimov screamed to the reader....
She was the only one left. One by one through his long life, he had lost his friends and those he had loved. Demerzel had left, never to return; Emperor Cleon was gone; his beloved Dors was gone; his faithful friend Yugo Amaryl was gone; and now Raych, his only son, was gone as well. He was left only with Wanda.
How meaningful for a grand child to stay. As you get old you stil need family. I wonder who Asimov's wanda was
“How far we have strayed from our founding principles. We were lucky this time, fellow citizens of Trantor. We owe a debt of thanks to Professor Hari Seldon for showing us our true selves; let us take his example
This is before social media, amazing asimov had confidence every trantor resident would see anf hear
What am I going to do now? wondered Seldon disconsolately. Is this the end of my work?
Surreal for asimov
Hari Seldon.
Asimov himself
